{"id":51109,"date":"2019-12-19T06:00:42","date_gmt":"2019-12-19T04:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/udexpress\/climate-crisis-earth-in-hot-water-20191218-2\/"},"modified":"2025-03-21T00:35:51","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T22:35:51","slug":"climate-crisis-earth-in-hot-water-20191218-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/udexpress\/climate-crisis-earth-in-hot-water-20191218-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate crisis: Earth in hot water"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

THE impact of the climate crisis on our oceans has far-reaching implications for biodiversity and humankind, requiring an urgent global political response in the next 12 months, a new Greenpeace International report warns. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe climate crisis is an oceans crisis. Rising global temperatures mean that our oceans are heating up as well, becoming unlivable for marine life,\u201d said Bukelwa Nzimande, Climate and Energy Campaigner for Greenpeace Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe oceans serve all of us, on the highveld or at the cape; they are the second lung of the planet, and their resilience and health means our own is protected. Millions of people around the world are calling for action. We cannot afford to allow marine ecosystems and functions to break down.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report urges coordinated action from governments, seizing on a series of events over the next year which presents a \u2018unique window of opportunity\u2019 to address climate breakdown, biodiversity loss and ocean protection on a global scale. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through protecting at least 30% of the ocean with a network of sanctuaries, marine ecosystems can build resilience and better withstand rapid changes, as well as help mitigate climate breakdown by safeguarding carbon sequestration and storage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report identifies ocean ecosystems at the frontline of climate impacts and recommends priority areas for governments to protect within a global network of ocean sanctuaries. These include both poles of the Arctic and Antarctic, whale hotspots, coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass meadows, the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic, the mesopelagic zone and the deep ocean, which the report states should remain off-limits to the nascent deep sea mining industry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe science is clear: our oceans are in a race against time. It is no longer just necessary, but critical for governments to commit urgently to immediate climate action that will safeguard not only the oceans, but all life and all people on a planet in crisis,\u201d ended Nzimande. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report comes as Mediterranean ministers gather in Naples for the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Barcelona Convention, where Greenpeace Italy is launching a coastal pilot station to monitor rising temperatures in the Mediterranean Sea, a hotspot for climate impacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n